The Cursed Child
by Joanna Baratheon
Summary: Before she was captured by Daenerys, Cersei slept with Jaime once more, resulting in pregnancy. The child, a daughter is given as a ward to Robb Stark, Lord of Winterfell. This is her story.
1. Prologue

This is the prologue of my new story which addresses the issue of what if Cersei became pregnant again by Jaime whilst Daenerys wins the war.

She was brought before the Dragon Queen in the same clothes in which she had been captured. Dirt and grime stained the once luxurious crimson gown, the weight of the previous weeks evident. Yet her golden mane, though matted, flowed on to her shoulders gloriously, her emerald eyes as fierce as ever. Though she was far from being a young maiden, there was something timeless in her appearance; but the body that could once have charmed the kingdoms now had a viscousness that signalled a lioness unwilling to accept defeat.

"You understand your crimes?" The dragon Queen questioned, violet eyes blazing at the fallen Lannister.

A smirk gathered on Cersei's face as a guard forced her on to her knees.

"If by crimes you imply my attempts to protect my family, then yes." She calmly stated, "Of any other crime I am innocent."

Daenerys Stormborn gripped the handles of the Iron Throne, her young face as stoic as ever.

"Whilst you have been rotting away in your cell, my council and I have been deciding your fate and that of your family, and after much deliberation a verdict has been reached."

A glimmer of hope flickered in her eyes briefly, the fierce protectiveness reared itself at the thought of her family.

"Your brother, Tyrion has agreed to join my council, all of his previous crimes have been forgiven. He has now become Lord of Casterly Rock as reward for his help during the last days of the war."

Cersei quickly glanced piercingly at her younger brother stood on the right of the throne were both of her sons had sat during the last few years and a flicker of burning hatred shone at the bane of her existence.

"Your son Tommen Rivers has been excused and has now been placed under the guardianship of Tyrion, and has been named heir to Casterley Rock. He has happily agreed to his new position, it seems he wasn't as happy with his life as you would think."

At this Cersei grew fiercely angry, as happy as she was that her cub was alive, the knowledge that her brother would be raising Her son was almost too much to take.

"Your daughter, Myrcella Rivers remains under the care of Dorne. When the knowledge of her true parentage was revealed, surprisingly the Dornish have decided to continue the engagement. She will be married to Prince Trystane after her name day. It seems your daughter has inherited some charm."

Cersei had been against the arrangement, she has been completely against sending her only daughter to a foreign land where the name Lannister was hated more than anything.

"Now your brother, the Kingslayer..."

This grabbed her attention, she hadn't received news of her brothers fate since she had been imprisoned.

"At first I was partial to executing Jaime Lannister for his many, many crimes against my family and the kingdoms, but after much deliberation with my advisors, I have decided to spare him."

She release the breath she didn't realise she was holding as relief flooded her being at the knowledge that her twin lived.

"He has been exiled from Kings Landing and is not to set foot in the city unless he wishes to meet a slow and painful death."

The news of her entire family's fate barely had time to sink in before she was met with the news of her own fate.

"Cersei Lannister, for your crimes against the seven Kingdoms, you are to be executed-" Daenerys began, the eyes of the entire throne room on the fallen Queen.

"No."

Gasps were heard at the lionesses insolence, and the last Targaryen's eyes froze.

"No?"

"You can't execute me, you would be killing an innocent." Cersei calmly stated, a victorious smirk emerged upon her sinister face.

"Innocent?" The Queen scoffed, "you are far from innocent."

"I may be guilty of many crimes, but my child isn't."

The throne room erupted into a frenzy, Lords and Ladies whispered frantically to eachother.

"I'm with child. My brothers child."

Hope you enjoyed this prologue, I hope to upload the first proper chapter later today, The next chapter will take place 17 years in the future, with frequent flashbacks


	2. Chapter 1 - Family

NEXT CHAPTER WOOOO

Robb Stark gazed across the courtyard, glancing at every servant and solider busy working to keep Winterfell functioning. It was shocking, he thought, that It was still functioning after all the death and mayhem that had occurred within its walls.

The war had ended 17 years ago, with the Lannisters, Baratheons and Starks all to busy fighting to notice Daenerys Targaryen growing in power. She gained the support of Dorne-who even though had made something that resembles an alliance when Myrcella Rivers had been sent to marry their Prince-who were all too happy to defeat the family that organised the death of their Princess Elia.

With the Dragon on the throne, the Lannisters had all been executed or exiled to some extent, Stannis had been defeated and sent back to Storms End with his tail between his legs, and Robb had been officially made Lord of Winterfell, with the Queen agreeing to stay out of northern affairs.

Luckily, apart from his father, Ned, the Stark family came out of the war relatively healthy.

Catelyn was still healthy, and was Robb's chief advisor on political matters. She had had to mourn her husband quickly then move on, a war being no place for grief. By the end of the war she had taken to being head of Robb's household incredibly well.

His brother (never half-brother) Jon remained at the wall, fighting against the creatures that lurked in the almost uninhabitable cold. Robb took regular trips to the wall to check that everything was working as normal, but be mainly just used it as an excuse to see his best friend.

Sansa had been released from her captivity when Daenerys took the Throne, and had returned to Winterfell a changed woman. In the Red Keep she had been forced to grow up faster than anyone should have to, and Joffrey's sadistic obsession had turned this former romantic into a stronger, powerful woman who had taken the job as liaison between Kings Landing and the north. This job suited Sansa perfectly and it was during one of her lengthy travels south that she met her husband-Willas Tyrell-a match that surprised everyone. She had fallen in love with his pride to prove himself, and his humbleness was so different to the fair Prince she's imagined marrying, yet he was exactly was she needed, and she was what he needed. They'd been married for 10 years and their union has produced two children. Their eldest was a boy of 8 summers called Eddard, who favoured the Tully's in appearance, and had no interest in ruling Highgarden, his only concern was how long it would take him to read every book in his library. Born two years after her brother was 6 year old Rose, who whilst favouring the Tyrell's in her dirty blonde hair and blue eyes, was as kind and gentle as her mother with a tendency to be a tell-tale, resulting in only a small elite group of friends.

Bran and Rickon both resided in Winterfell, Bran having never quite recovered from the war, leaving it to Rickon to encourage his older brother to be active. The brothers has become closer over the years and by the present they were practically inseparable.

But it was Arya who ended up surprising everyone the most. Towards the end of the war she had fled to Braavos and it was there she trained for months in an effort to get revenge on the entire Lannister family. Much to the happiness of her family, her friend Gendry managed to track her and convinced her that revenge was not the answer. So following the end of the war she went to the Dragon Queen and requested to be a member of the Queensguard. And so she did, and until this day had served Daenerys faithfully, and the Queen was one of two people she would give up her life for outside of her family. The other was Gendry, who much to the surprise of everyone had somehow captured Arya's heart. Though her position meant that marriage was out of the question, both had agreed that married life wasn't for them anyway. So they pursued a casual relationship with Gendry opening his own smithery, where even thought he employed over a dozen men, he still worked as if he was still an apprentice.

Then Robb's thoughts turned to himself, and how much yet how little had happened since the war. His wife Jeyne died in childbirth, leaving Robb with a son who could have been Ned Stark reincarnated in appearance, except for his hair which favoured the Tully's in colour. But his personality was just like his fathers, at 17 years of age he was honourable and honest, fair and caring. His actions revolved entirely around his family's best interests, his family including many he was not bound in blood to.

His son has an open and trusting heart which he had quickly given to someone who he couldn't marry.

His ward

Yay, Second chapter! This was just a quick introduction into where the characters are in the story as it is very AU. The 'ward', the focus of the story will be introduced next chapter, as I wanted to upload this today.

Hope you enjoy ^.^


	3. Chapter 2 - New Beginnings

**Sorry for not posting in weeks, but hopefully this chapter will make up for it. The next chapter will most likely be up tomorrow, but the following ones may take some time.**

_Robb Stark _

He met his visitors an hours ride from Winterfell, at a small inn that was favoured by travellers on the Kings Road. The innkeeper was gracious in welcoming the Lord and several knights, a larger company deemed unnecessary for such a small journey. The rum was weak and watered down but that didn't stop Robb downing a pint to calm his nerves.

He wasn't one to suffer from anxiety regularly; the war forced him to grow up too quickly. Part of that was learning to expect anything and be prepared for everything. However that didn't stop a barrage of butterflies to rage in his stomach as his eyes fixated on the dark wooden door opposite.

Despite Winterfell only being a few miles from his location, Robb couldn't help but feel nervous from being away from his son, Jon, despite his 17th nameday having recently occurred. He felt extremely protective of his only child ever since his birth where his mother, Jeyne, had passed. It was as if Jon was still that weak baby that had almost perished in his mother's womb. The young man who looked so much like his father and grandfather was still just an infant in his father's eyes, so fragile and susceptible to the harsh world.

He wished that Jon could have as many siblings as he had growing up. The loneliness of being an only child something that he had never wanted any offspring of his to suffer but in the years following his wife's death Robb had been unable to bring himself to love another. Catelyn had been Jon's mother figure growing up, with Sansa's help whenever she visited, he own children not having been born yet.

Robb supposed he was grateful that Jon wasn't completely alone in the world. He took Sansa's two children under his wing whenever they visited, the role of older brother coming naturally to him. Beside from his cousin's, his son also had Winterfell's ward to keep him company, someone of his age to laugh and play with, to sneak through the corridors with, surprising unsuspecting servants.

When he had accepted the Lannister bastard into his home all those years ago he had assumed that he would grow to resent the babe in the same way that Catelyn had resented Jon, as if he was unworthy of existing. However much to his surprise he had grown to care for the child as if she was his own. He had been there for her first word, for every tear and scraped knee. He had also been there for every question, every enquiry into her parents and the remnants of the golden family that she had never known.

It was for this ward's sake that Robb was meeting in the nondescript inn for. Well, this was partly true. Robb believed that she would benefit, there was a chance that this could ruin many hopes that she held dear to her heart.

The heavy, iron-clad door swung open and in walked a figure he had not laid eyes upon for 16 years, the Queen's Hand and one of the only remaining members of family that his ward has left.

_Tyrion Lannister_

"Robb Stark, a grown man." The imp spoke slowly, elongating every syllable.

"I have been a man for many years now, your family's war made sure of that." Robb coldly retorted, clasping hands with the smaller man.

Tyrion Lannister had not been affected by the years as many others had, his mismatched eyes still holding the same cunning glint, whilst his dirty blonde hair was marred by grey.

"Yes, you have and you look even more like your father every second. A quality that I luckily didn't share with my own father."

This was met with little more than a rough nod before both Lord's returned outside to finish the ride to Winterfell.

_Winterfell_

A clang rang out throughout the courtyard as swords clashed repeatedly in an almost rhythmic pattern of blocks and dodges, the movement of the two instruments battling in unison a symphony as control was fought for.

A sharp bang rang out as one of the fights was knocked to the ground with a long swipe to the shins. This was quickly followed by the standing opponents tumbling down by a kick to the feet. The falling man landed with a harsh clang on top of their opponent. The metallic music ending with a pile of armour and laughter as one pinned the other with their arms above their heads.

"Learning some new moves I see," the trapped solider laughed as their helmet was forced from their head, revealing a handsome man who couldn't be mistaken for anything but a Stark of Winterfell. His only southern features being his red locks, which could only be traced to the House of Tully. Silvery grey eyes were almond-shaped and were entirely fixated on his opponent as they removed their own helmet.

This second fighter shared no qualities with their prisoner, each feature being entirely opposed, as if the Gods had decided to personify day and night, light and dark. Golden curls fell past her shoulders, framing her face like a silk curtain. Eyes as green as a thousand emeralds shone between long, dark lashes, which despite reflecting kindness held a hint of cunningness and mischief. Skin paled by the sunless land was met with a light golden hue, despite spending a life in the north.

Both teenagers were tall and willowy, beauty and grace complimented strength and honour.

It was an odd sight to behold for anyone unfamiliar with the pair. The product of an incestuous union between Cersei and Jaime Lannister friends with the reincarnation of Ned Stark. But as they lay in the dirt, houses and families were forgotten as the girl jumped up and grabbed her sword, pointing it at Jon Starks neck.

"Surrender Lord Stark?" A melodic voice rang out, charm and charisma overflowing.

"Never, my Lady Joanna." The reply uttered.

A thousand emotions were expressed in the brief glance that followed.

The most prominent one was love.

Jon Stark was completely and utterly in love with Joanna Rivers.

And she had no idea.

**I hope you have enjoyed this chapter ^.^ I look forward to writing scenes between Joanna and Jon, and there will be more interactions next chapter, as well as the meeting between Tyrion and his niece.**


	4. Chapter 3 - Winterfell

**Yay! Another chapter. So far I'm really surprising myself as this is the most chapters I've ever posted in a story. I meant to include Tyrion's meeting with Joanna in this but I got carried away with the flashback and decided to have the meeting next chapter.**

"I assume that I will be meeting my niece at some point during my stay?" Tyrion mused sarcastically as he followed Robb towards the sound of music and nonsensical chatter.

He was met with a knowing smile, "Of course, Lord Tyrion, however Joanna has spent the entire day with my son, Jon. They appeared to be having so much fun I couldn't bring myself to separate them."

"They are close then? Friends or perhaps something more?" The shorter man queried as they reached the feast, row after row of rowdy Northerners devouring the splendid food before them.

A laugh came from the Northern Lord, "I'm sure if you asked both of them, you would find their answers quite different."

"An unrequited love, perhaps?"

"I have known of my sons affections for much longer than he has. He spends a lot of his time following her around like a lost dog." Robb smirked in remembrance.

"And does dear Joanna feel the same?" Tyrion asked, his eyes skimming the hall in search of his relative.

"Joanna believes their relationship to not be more than that of brother and sister."

This made Tyrion scoff loudly, "That didn't stop my siblings."

This momentarily killed the conversation before Robb changed the topic of conversation. "I've cared for Joanna as if she was my own, I am a father to her. I've treated her exactly as if she was truly mine."

"Well if you were her father, who was her mother?"

"My mother, the Lady Catelyn."

"Ah," Tyrion drew out the sound, as he was escorted to the head table where he sat to the right of Robb. "Was the Lady Catelyn entirely happy about raising the bastard child of the man who crippled her son?"

"At first she reacted entirely as expected. She refused to be in the same room as the baby. My Lady mother resented the Queen's decision to have us take in Joanna. She was even harsher than she had been to my brother Jon." Robb explained as his mother, her hair now flecked with grey, entered the Hall.

"So what changed?" Tyrion leant an elbow on the table, drawing closer to Lord Stark.

"_Where is Jon, Lady Stark?" A 6 year old Joanna enquired, her tiny legs swinging back and forth as she was forced to stare at yet another page detailing the history of Westeros. _

_Reading didn't come naturally to Joanna as it did to other children, she could never finish the pages Lady Stark made her read. So last year Lord Stark had made the decision that Jon and Joanna would be tutored separately, so they could go at more suitable paces. Jon was lucky enough to receive a kind old man as his tutor, who would often fall asleep part way through a sentence, meaning that Jon could often mess around for the majority of his lesson. _

_Joanna on the other hand was tutored by Catelyn Stark, her biggest enemy in all of Winterfell. Whilst almost the entire castle had fallen in love with the charismatic girl, Lady Stark regarded her with an unshakeable dislike. No matter how nice she would be, no matter how much she would suck up to her, the Lady never changed her feelings. So eventually Joanna stopped trying._

"_It is of no consequence to you, child. My grandson is not tutoring you, I am. So it would benefit you to pay me some respect." The greying woman retorted, blue eyes meeting green._

_Joanna huffed and began the page again._

"_And Aegon the… and Aegon the con.. conq.." She struggled with the words, the letters swirling on the page._

"_Conqueror. Aegon the conqueror. We've been over this many times, how can you still not understand!" The usually expressionless Catelyn snapped, closing her own book._

_Any other child would have been fazed by this outburst, many would have burst into tears, sobbing. But not Joanna. She was far too proud to show weakness._

"_Why do you hate me?" She asked, putting all her effort into making her voice as calm as possible. "I've never done anything wrong to you-rarely-but you still look at me like I'm a monster."_

_This unexpected question threw Lady Stark. Her anger fizzled out as she turned to the golden haired child looking innocently up at her._

"_I don't hate you-"_

"_Yes you do." She interrupted harshly._

"_No," the older woman countered, trying to ignore her rudeness, "I hate what you stand for. You are the result of everything that I hated for years. I hated your parents family for years during the war, even the members who had never wronged me."_

"_But I am not my parents, I'm just myself. And I personally think that myself is an amazing person, almost faultless." Joanna remarked sincerely._

_Lady Catelyn was quite unsure how to react but before she could respond, Winterfell's ward started giggling. Despite having heard this laughter many times before when Joanna had been playing with Jon, this time she found it infectious, and couldn't stop herself from smiling. _

"She certainly sounds like a unique child." Tyrion mused, imagining the scene.

Robb smiled fondly, "Now she has all of Winterfell wrapped around her fingers. If she told someone to do anything I doubt any man could refuse."

"Well what could you expect from the offspring of the woman who managed to cling on to the throne for two decades, and the man who could have had any woman he wanted."

"Exactly."

**That's it for this chapter. **

**Next Chapter: Tyrion meets Joanna and more Joanna/Jon interaction. **

**Thanks for the feedback so far, criticism is always welcome. **

**I hope you've enjoyed this chapter, and hopefully, I get two chapters posted by the New Year. However my birthday is on the 30****th**** so I won't be posting then.**


	5. Chapter 4 - Calm before the Storm

Sorry this is a short chapter. I've recently been losing inspiration and motivation to write. This chapter is just a quick drabble that doesn't further the plot but just sets the scene. This is basically a Joanna/Jon friendship chapter. Hope you enjoy

-Flashback-

Jon flew round the corner, his unruly curls flying behind him. He bent over as he attempted to breathe, his heart pounding out of his chest.

A golden flash flew past him as he rested, a victorious giggle echoing throughout the cold stone corridor.

"Catch me if you can!" A 14 year old Joanna taunted as she raced round the corner.

Groaning Jon began running again, his long legs pumping as he attempted to catch Winterfells infamous Gold Whirlwind. His best friend never stopped moving, the slower pace of Northern life never quite suiting her. He imagined that if she was released into the wild then she could reach Kings Landing within a week. Years of running from Lady Stark meant that she could now outrun Jon, despite his daily training.

Following the trail of laughter Jon found himself in the courtyard, without a golden head in sight. It was as if she had completely disappeared. As he scanned the small crowd his eyes fell upon his youngest uncle, Rickon.

"Uncle Rickon, have you seen Joanna?"

The still relatively young man shook his head at his nephew, "No, have you lost her?"

"Maybe." The teen gasped, "I'm not sure where she went."

A smirk grew on his uncles face suddenly, his eyes twinkling.

Jon's eyebrows furrowed, confused "What-" His sentence was cut off as a heavy force knocked him off his feet. His face landed in the mud with a thud as he was pinned to the ground.

"Thanks Uncle Rickon." A familiar voice sang as he was pushed further into the dirt.

"No problem," he chuckled, "anything for my favourite niece."

"Get off me Joanna!" He exclaimed, "and I thought I was your favourite."

He managed to twist his head round to see a smirking girl pinning him to ground with her foot. Her eyes were gleaming with happiness as she replied.

"Since when have you been a niece? You certainly have the hair to be a girl." She twisted once of his muddy curls.

"You know what I meant, Joanna! I'll tell my father unless you get off of me." Jon whined.

With a final laugh Joanna released her friend and held out her hand to help him up. The hand was taken and the unlikely pair were quickly chasing each other again despite the mud that the boy was now trailing.

Watching from a balcony Robb Stark smiled, wishing that his son and ward would never have to grow up.


	6. Chapter 5 - Every Rose Has Its Thorns

This chapter was particularly fun to write because it shows a side to Joanna that isn't completely the delightful and cheerful girl she first appears as. I hate Mary-Sues and I hope that I am making Joanna more complex than that as well as being realistic and likeable. This chapter follows on from the chapter before last.

Joanna

A forest green dress lined with grey fur lay on her bed, a perfect blend of North and south. Despite having grown up in Winterfell, having only spent her first few days of life in Kings Landing, she had always preferred the styles of dress in the South. Yes, she knew that in the frigid cold only the thick shapeless garments would suffice but the dark, dreary colours looked monstrous upon her. Upon her the traditional Northern dresses seemed to swallow her, her tall yet petite frame and Southron features would never adjust to her home. To Joanna the North was her home and this was just another item on her long list of things that alienated her from those she considered family.

The dress also matched her eyes.

Previously a red gown was considered for the feast as it was her house colours but the girl quickly dismissed it, saying that she isn't a Lannister, she is a Waters, and so she can wear what she wants.

The matter was settled quickly as no one wanted to anger Joanna, for as sweet and playful as she is, she also had quite a temper. Once, when Joanna was only 7, Lady Stark refused to let her play with Jon until he finished learning her spellings. She gradually become more annoyed until eventually she grabbed as centuries old bust of one of the Starks ancestor and somehow managed to throw it out of the window. Since then all those in Winterfell were mindful of her temper.

Her only servant, a young girl not much older than Joanna, called Thalya, began to dress the Golden Whirlwind. It had been drilled into Joanna from a young age that she couldn't let servants do everything. However she much preferred being dressed, it was what the servants were for, she argued.

"Tighter." She exclaimed as Thalya fastened the dress.

As much as she would deny it Joanna was quite vain and wouldn't hesitate to slap someone if they so much as knocked a hair out of place. But all of Winterfell agreed that she had a right to be vain as she was extremely pretty, her volatile temperament being the only thing that slightly humbled her.

"Will there be many knights at the feast?" She asked Thalya as the finishing adjustments were made to her outfit.

"Jon says-"

"No," she interrupted, "I want to know what you think. Any I don't want to know about the ugly old ones."

The question left the older girl flustered, "well, uh, Lord Greyjoy's son is here and I've heard he is popular with ladies."

(((( He never betrayed the Starks in this fic ))))

"Ha!" She chuckled, "if he's anything like his father than he'll sleep with anything with a pulse. I'm better than that."

"Of course, Joanna." Thalya smirked.

"Now," Joanna announced, spinning once, "We shall make our entrance."

Tyrion-

He was not as young as he once was and seeing Robb Stark all grown up made him realise this like nothing else. This man had once been just a young boy who knew nothing of war and hardship was now The Lord of Winterfell, a strong man with a son on the cusp of manhood himself.

For the first time in years he was nervous. He had no idea what his youngest niece would be like, whether nature or nurture would win. Based on her parentage one would expect Joanna to be either a cold-hearted conniving yet regal young woman, or a playful girl who would be willing to kill innocents for those she loved. Not that he blamed Jaime, in fact it was his convincing that prevented Daenerys to spare his older brothers life. However, if nurture was to win Joanna would be the opposite to the rest of her family, a Lannister only in appearance.

"My son, Jon, will be escorting Joanna tonight, they should be here soon." Lord Stark explained, turning to him as he sat at the head of the table.

"The Lady Catelyn is allowing bastards to dine with us? Didn't she forbid your half-brother from the feast when I first came to Winterfell?" Tyrion enquired.

"My mother is much more accepting now." He signalled to Catelyn Stark on his other side, "Ah, it seems they have arrived."

The doors of the Great Hall opened with a creak and stood there was his much anticipated niece on the arm of the young heir to Winterfell.

His first glance at Joanna made him instantly think of Cersei. She had an almost regal beauty that encompassed his brothers curled mane of gold and emerald eyes that twinkled with mischief. She was tall for her age, like her parents, almost reaching her partner in height. However amongst milky skin sat a smirk that instinctively made him thing of Joffrey, as it was the exact feature that he had displayed as he caused others pain.

Dismissing that image from his mind he smiled as he watched the pair walking up to the main table.

"May I present my son and heir, Jon, and my ward, Joanna Waters."

He bowed slightly as he watched Jon bow and Joanna curtesy. Watching the Stark boy he saw a look of absolute infatuation being displayed towards his niece, unknown to her.

"I'm honoured to welcome you to our home, Lord Tyrion, and I hope you enjoy your stay." Joanna recited, smiling gracefully.

Much to his disappointment he was unable to converse any further with his niece for the rest of the feast, and before he could change that she was escorted back to her rooms by her admirer.

I hope you've enjoyed this chapter. The next chapter will be almost entirely Joanna/Tyrion but I'm thinking of creating another OC. If you have any suggestions then leave a review and I may add them. In terms of Joanna romantic interests, Jon's affections will not be returned for a while, but her next interest should be appearing in two chapters. The character is canon and will be older and affections will be from both sides. 100 points if you can guess who it is.


End file.
